Beneath the Starlight
by MysticEyesx
Summary: Astrid, eldest daughter of Bard, sets off on a dangerous journey to help Lake-town return to its original glory before Erebor's fall. To do this, Astrid must fulfill the prophecy and return the heir of Durin to the Lonely Mountain. Astrid joins the Company of Thorin Oakenshield, much to Thorin's dismay, and helps the company complete their quest to Erebor.
1. Part 1: Chapter 1

**BENEATH THE STARLIGHT**

…

_PART ONE_

Over Misty Mountains Cold

…

_Chapter One_

The light pitter-patter of raindrops falling upon the rooftop began the first day of autumn. Astrid—daughter of Bard—lay awake in the rickety bed she shared with her sisters, Sigrid and Tilda. The sun had yet to rise over the foggy mountain horizon, but Astrid could tell from the lifting of darkness that dawn was fast approaching, thus meaning Astrid was finding herself rapidly running out of time. Hours Astrid had lain awake in this rickety bed, the warmth of Tilda's body somewhere nearby, experiencing something she had not anticipated feeling after months of comprehensive preparation: doubt. She was doubting her plans; she was doubting leaving Lake-town.

Lake-town was her home, despite bleakness every morning brings and hopelessness that was buried deep in their stomach when another dinnerless evening prevailed. She couldn't imagine leaving Lake-town, but she had to. She could not watch another day's of suffering any longer. She had to do _something_ and do something she will. Only that something is comes with great risk, great responsibility, great danger. Astrid had to realise, when she leaves Lake-town, her chances of returning to Lake-town again were slim. The world was no longer a peaceful place; dark times were commencing—it was thick in the air, looming over them in the darkness of the stormy clouds, watching their every move . . . waiting, anticipating, _haunting._ Astrid feared the worst was yet to come for Lake-town and she wasn't willing to sit back and watch the people of Lake-town—her father, her brother, her sisters whom lain beside her—wither and suffer because of it.

And that is why she must go. For the health of her people, her family, she must at least try to prevent these dark times from reaching their doorsteps.

If she must do this, today is the only day she could do this. If not, she must wait another year, and Astrid wasn't quite sure she could even do that.

Whispers of the mountain are beginning to reach ears of Lake-Men. Decades the dragon has dwelled beneath the old, magnificent, halls of Erebor—unseen. People grow restless, _speculating _the dragon's living status. _Is it still alive? _They ask. Many believe so, but some—those rare few—are beginning to doubt; are beginning to doubt the dragon still slumbers in the piles of gold nestled in the heart of the mountain. Many want that vast gold within the Lonely Mountain and before long people will march to the Lonely Mountain to retrieve it. And unless it is in forms of the heirs of Durin, Lake-town will fall, and the prophecy will become unfulfilled.

Astrid must see this prophecy fulfilled. Even if it means risking her own life to make it happen. She must see Lake-town prosper again. Esgaroth must rise once more.

The doubt that Astrid had been experiencing for the past few hours had been pushed to the back of the mind and somehow Astrid managed to move her legs from beneath the warmth of her bed and leave the bed. Astrid was taking her first step to beginning her journey. She slipped into her garments—slipping on her forest-green overlays, her leather corset and brown breeches underneath before tucking her feet into her dirty hunting boots. She pulled the rucksack of packed belongings, bow and daggers from beneath the bed, and reached for her quiver bedside the bedside cabinet.

It was then when a whisper of a voice reached her ears.

"You're leaving."

Astrid looked up. She had not realised that not only Tilda, who had spoken, but Sigrid had woken up with her manoeuvrings. Astrid had feared this would happened. She avoided their eyes as she wrapped the brown leather belt around her waist and sliced the daggers into the leather holsters. She knew if she looked at them, the doubt would return and she could not afford for it to do so. "Yes." She muttered, attempting not to convey any form of emotion as she did.

"But why?" Tilda's voice was painfully innocent and confused. It pained Astrid's heart.

Before Astrid could even open her mouth, Sigrid's brash voice spoke for her. "Isn't it obvious Tilda? She's running away, she's just as sick of this place as we are. She's leaving us and never coming back."

Astrid felt a surge of anger overcome her and she looked upon her sister with ferocity. "That is not the truth and you know it." Astrid hissed. "You know more than anyone that I would do nothing to hurt my family. If I didn't have the choice, I would not be leaving." Astrid muttered, putting the last blade into the holster inside her boot.

Tilda sat up from her bed, positioning herself on her knees. "But you _do_ have a choice. You _can _stay. You _have _to stay." Tilda's voice broke at the end.

Astrid was finding this harder than ever. "No." she whispered, brokenly. "I cannot stay, not when the people of Lake-town continue to suffer; not when there is a chance I can help bring life back to Esgaroth."

"And how to you plan to do that?" Sigrid spat.

Astrid softened her eyes, knowing Sigrid was taking this the hardest of the two of them. "To fulfill the prophecy."

Sigrid's face dropped. "You're mad." Sigrid lowly muttered. "You've gone insane. The heirs of Durin haven't been seen for decades."

"That is because they reside in the Blue Mountains, mourning the loss of their once prosperous kingdom." Astrid replied. "If only I could persuade them to _return _to Erebor, march against the mountain, slay the dragon and take back their kingdom then _maybe_—just maybe—Lake-town will no longer suffer. We will be prosperous again; we will be plentiful. We will not suffer. We will be _happy._"

Sigrid sighed. "But how . . ."—she shook her head—". . . _how_ do you think you could possibly persuade the dwarves to return to Erebor after so much they have lost?"

Astrid shook her head, solemnly. "I do not know, but I have to try."

There was a moment pause.

"Father will be mad." Tilda said.

Sigrid continued: "He will search through the forests of Greenwood for months. He will fear you dead."

"I know."

"He will not stop until you return."

Astrid's heart clenched painfully. "I know."

"His heart will be broken."

"I-I know. I can only hope he can understand if I return." _If. _There was no point giving them false hope.

"He won't." Astrid swallowed thickly at Sigrid's hard words. She was right—everything she has said was right. But these are the things Astrid has to be willing to risk. "Go." Sigrid said, finally, after some moments. "Just go."

Astrid nodded, turning on the spot and heading for the door. When she turned back around, Tilda's lip was quivering, her eyes were glistening in the pale moonlight and her face was heart-breaking. That imagine would haunt Astrid through the lonely nights on the road, she knew it. Sigrid's face was expressionless, but her eyes spoke otherwise. She couldn't bare to see Astrid go, and Astrid couldn't bare to leave. But she had to. She _had _to.

"I love you." Astrid murmured, her hand resting upon the doorframe. "All of you. _You're _the reason I do this; so that, one day, we can look back in our life full of plentiful and be grateful to no longer live in these cold, bleak times."

And with that, Astrid knew she must go now. Before it was too late . . . before Astrid changed her mind.

**A/N: Hello FanFiction readers! Thank you for reading this chapter. I hope you have thoroughly enjoyed it and decide to come back for more when I next update. Please let me know what you think of this story idea. It came to me while I went to the cinema to watch DOS (which was AMAZING btw). Astrid is the daughter of Bard & will join the dwarves the company of dwarves to Erebor to reclaim the mountain. This WILL be a Thorin/OC story, so if you don't like that shipping, then I suggest you don't carry on reading it :)****  
**

**Next chapter: Astrid's journey begins. **


	2. Part 1: Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing but Astrid.

…

_Chapter Two_

Over mountains and rivers, through towns and forests, Astrid travelled. The days had turned into weeks and the weeks had turned into months. Autumn was passing right before her eyes. The nights were growing colder, the leaves were falling quicker, the air was becoming crisper; winter was approaching. Most nights Astrid spent on the road, sleeping under canopies that shielded her from the pounding rain, or sleeping in barns on the outskirts of settlements. Astrid never stayed in one place for more than a night; she kept moving, never stopping and never looking back. But there were the rare times—the times when she would wake up, gasping and panting, after a difficult night's sleep, wondering what her family was doing now.

She just hoped her father hadn't rendered her dead just yet.

Astrid has been travelling along the Great East Road for some time now. A day had passed without stopping to sleep or eat and it was beginning to show its signs. Her head grew lighter with thirst, her stomach grew heavier with hunger, and her lids grew heavy with fatigue. Night had long settled in over the treetops and the pathway through the forest was scarcely lit by the moonlight above. Eleniel, her beautiful mare, was camouflaged into the darkness; her glossy black body was like a moving shadow in the night, but her silvery mane glowed like stars in the night sky. Over these months Eleniel has been her constant, and only, company through the days and nights. Sometimes—more often than not—when Astrid was at her loneliest, she would talk to Eleniel. Strange, some might call it, but Astrid knew it was better than falling into insanity.

The forest was quiet tonight. No bird or animal could be heard this dark, fickle night. It brought eeriness to the cool, late-autumn air. Something in the back of Astrid's mind was warning her to remain alert, but fatigue, hunger and thirst was slowly overruling her mind. Eleniel, also, seemed to be becoming succumbed to the long restless travel of the past day; her footing was beginning to slow and her head was beginning sag. Astrid knew they had to stop, before either one of them collapses.

Astrid reached across and ran her palm along Eleniel's neck. "_Come, Eleniel, let us find a waterbed for us to drink and sleep beside. We have had enough for one night._" Astrid whispered to the mare. Eleniel seemed grateful of this news, because a new strength overcame her as she curved right and took Astrid off course of the Great East Road. On any other night, going astray from the road would have made her wary but tonight she couldn't quite comprehend the dangers of it. Besides, Eleniel was no ordinary mare. She was clever and Astrid trusted her with her life.

They travelled through the darkness for a short while. Their movement was like loud thunderclaps, echoing through the quiet, soundless forest around them. Astrid continued to hear or see nothing, until they approached the small river that ran through the forest. Even the river was silent this eerie night. Moonlight reflected off it, like crystals in light, shimmering and alluring. Hazily, Astrid pulled herself off Eleniel and the both of them stumbled to the river, bending down and drinking from its water. The water was cold and sent icy shivers down her spine but it did not stop her, she drank with shaky hands thirstily. When her thirst was quenched, she pulled her leather water pouch from her bag and began to fill the pouch with water.

It was then a strange feeling prickled down her spine. Beside her Eleniel scuffed her hooves against the waterbed and stopped drinking, rattling her reigns and huffing. Astrid froze. Suddenly the night seemed darker than usual and the silence was deafening. Then she heard it—a crack; loud, unmistakable and clear as day. She was no longer alone. Her hand immediately reached for the bow on her back. The sound had come from across the lake. Rustling was now admitting from the area. Her hand peeled an arrow from her quiver and she slowly, silently, positioned it in place. She didn't need light to guide her arrow to the bow. She could position and shoot an arrow blindfolded. She was a skilled hunter, much liker her father.

The rustling became louder. Astrid remained calm and senseless, like she had been taught to be. The arrow and bow in her hand did not quiver, did not move—it remained still, calm, positioned and ready to be shot. When, through the darkness, Astrid spotted a bush shudder nearby. She readied herself to shoot when suddenly a rabbit popped out of the bush. Astrid felt her shoulders relax as she watched the rabbit hop to the water bank and lower its head to drink. Its lips had barely reached the water when its head snapped back up, its ears snapping upright in alert. Astrid felt a sinking feeling in her stomach. She swerved quickly on the spot.

She did not have to have seen an orc before to know what this creature was. She had heard rumours of it. Her father had told her about the vile creatures, before calmly reassuring her child mind that no orc would dare wonder into the Greenwood unless they wanted to be slain ruthlessly by the wood-elves. They looked exactly like her father had described them and worse; their figures distorted, skin the colour of corpses, eyes evil, and teeth like fangs. Three of them were running towards her, swords blazed.

Astrid ducked before their swords could strike her and dodged to the left, drawing her away from Eleniel who was neighing in distress. She stepped away from them, bow and arrow poised, refraining them from coming any further. The orcs paused their attack, but they didn't keep still; they crept towards her, like a predator stalking its prey. One of the orcs opened its mouth, hissing and smacking its lips together, making strange sounds which Astrid could only presume was Orkish. The three orcs chuckled and the middle one, who Astrid presumed was the leader, finally spoke.

"Look what we have here. An Earthling wondered too far from home."

Astrid's grip tightened on her bow. "Stay back." She seethed through her teeth. The orcs chuckled again. "Don't make me kill you, orc scum." Her voice shook.

"I say we chop off her limbs one by one and watch her _scream_ in agony." One of the orcs hissed, slithering closer to her.

The third orc ran its tongue over its black lips. "I taste her in the air. . ."—the orc sniffed the air—"fresh, meaty flesh . . . _delicious_."

Her finger moved and the arrow sprung, flashing across the distance between her and the orcs. The orc that spoke dropped to the ground, arrow embedded through its head. "_I said_ don't make me kill you."

The two orcs took one look at the dead orc, with the arrow embedded into its brain through its left eye, and attacked—roaring and swords raised. Astrid jumped to the right, baring enough time for her to gather the second arrow and shoot it straight at the second orc. The arrow missed as the orc dodged to the right. The leader swung its sword forward. Astrid ducked, moved, and the second orc advanced on her. She swerved right and the orc's sword swung straight into a tree, lodging itself deep into the wood. Astrid took this opportunity to swipe an arrow from her quiver and shoot it straight through its neck. The orc screamed and gurgled as the arrow pierced through its flesh and dropped to the ground, clawing and scratching at its neck, struggling to breathe.

This left her with the last, and only, orc who seemed much more resistant than the other two. The orc growled and hissed at her, baring its teeth. "I'm going to scrape every last piece of meat from your _bones_, Earthling." The orc seethed. The orc lunged and this time Astrid wasn't quick enough to reach for another arrow. She moved to the right, but the orc still managed to knock her off course, sending her straight to the ground and her bow and arrow flying. Astrid landed on her side hard by the riverbed, her shoulder dislocating. She could feel her hair being dragged and pushed around by the ice-cold water current. The orc chuckled as he advanced on her. "I look forward to hearing you scream." The orc growled maliciously.

When the orc was about to lunge once more, Astrid reached down and pulled her dagger from her boot and swung forward, slamming the dagger straight into its jugular and made her get away. Cradling her dislocated shoulder, she rushed towards her bow and arrow, gritting her teeth at the pain her shoulder was emitting. She heard the orc roar behind her as it pulled the dagger from its neck. Astrid panted and heaved; her eyes targeted on the bow and arrow that was meters away from her. Only a few more steps and . . .

She screamed, dropping straight to the ground when a dagger sliced through her calf. She looked down at her leg, seeing the handle of her dagger sticking out of her bloodied calf. The orc was now approaching her, its neck and face bloody, looking angrier than ever. This time, she knew, he wasn't going to hold back. His sword was already ready to attack. Death was approaching. Adrenaline kicked in and the pain in her leg was put aside. She dragged, clawed and pulled herself across the forest ground, dirt and grime digging into her fingernails as she dragged her beaten body with all her strength to the bow.

Grasping the bow and arrow in her hands, she turned onto her back to see the orc above her, seconds from swinging its sword down. She poised the arrow and let go. The arrow went straight through its forehead, the head of the arrow coming out the other side, black orc blood splashing down onto her. The orc dropped dead to the ground.

Triumph overwhelmed her and the adrenaline slowly seeped out of her veins.

Astrid dragged her self back onto her feet and limped over to the orc corpses, pulling the arrows from their flesh, grimacing at each of their bodies as she did so. She put them back in her quiver, making mental note to clean them. Eleniel made her appearance then, trotting over to her, nuzzling her face when she appeared at her side seeming relieved to see her unhurt. "_Not quite unhurt, I'm afraid,_" Astrid weakly said, slumping into the horse, cradling her shoulder, and nodded down to her calf where the dagger was still embedded. Eleniel dropped to the ground and Astrid gratefully scrambled onto her back, grasping tight onto the reigns when Eleniel moved back onto her hooves.

And then she knew no more.

**A/N: Thank you to all those who have read, favourite'd, followed and reviewed this story! I hope you have enjoyed this chapter. Sorry there are no dwarves in the story just yet, but you'll be hearing of them soon—a certain dwarf in particular ;) I really appreciate the reviews. They really do make me feel excited about writing this story. Knowing someone likes your style of writing and can engage with the characters really means a lot when you're writing a story—at least, for me, that's what I find :)**

**I made a poster for this story, which you can see a bit of it on the story profile image, however, you can see the full version of it on my author profile. It's linked clearly under 'Banners'. Katniss Everdeen is the inspiration for 'Astrid', purely because she's a kickass archer! I had imagined Astrid being blonde, like Sigrid & Tilda, but the hair colour doesn't necessarily matter!**

**Next chapter: Astrid wakes up to company.**


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